1.
Case Study: Using a Systems
Design Model to Bring Clean
Drinking Water to Rural and
Slum Communities in India
Sarah Tranum, OCAD University/TrickleUp Design Inc. Toronto, Canada
Relating Systems Thinking and Design Symposium (RSD5)
October 15, 2016

2.
600,000 children
die EVERY YEAR from
diarrhea or pneumonia
fromunclean water
Reference: UNICEF Handbook on Water Quality, 2008

3.
Image Credit: (clockwise) Eureka Forbes AquaSure Water Purifiers; Mebelkart.com; Ion Exchange (India) Ltd. Zero B
Examples
of water
cleaning
solutions
available

4.
FIT
SCALE
SUSTAINABILITY

5.
Affordable?

6.
FIT
with
REALITIES and
OPPORTUNITIES?

7.
Image Credit: Vestergaard LifeStraw
Modelled to
reach SCALE?

8.
Little or
NO local
economic
impact
FAIR
labour
practices?
product
payment

9.
Sustainable?
cultural
environmental
financial
social

10.
Solution Ecosystem
product/
service
local
production
local
distribution
education/
training
participatory
design
broader
understanding
long-term
adoption
community
ownership/
responsibility
systemic
change
scalable
self-
sustaining

11.
CleanCube

12.
Pilot Community
South Goa

13.
Connecting
health, water,
sanitation,
hygiene, &
economics

14.
& WATER
interconnected
WOMEN

15.
& WASTE
interconnected
WATER

16.
WATER
storage is KEY

17.
Especially
Drinking
WATER

18.
INTUITIVE
Practices

19.
Sustainable
cultural
environmental
social
financial
robust
solution

20.
CleanCube
PROCESS

21.
CleanCube
prototype

22.
local
production
local
distribution
education/
training
participatory
design
broader
understanding
long-term
adoption
community
ownership/
responsibility
systemic
change
scalable
self-
sustaining
CleanCube
Solution Ecosystem

23.
CO-DESIGNING
with the community

24.
Option 2Option 1
Pick-UpDrop-Off
Manure
InorganicOrganic
vRecycle
Landfill
Recyclable
Materials
Seperated
IMAGINING
the needed
infrastructure

25.
EXPERIENCING
the power of cooperation

26.
CREATING
a shared message

27.
MEMBER
Zuarinagar Evergreen
Association
CATALYST for
community action

28.
PROVEN
Models

29.
SELF HELP
Groups (SHGs)

30.
SMALL batch
PRODUCTION

31.
HEALTH & PRODUCTION
TRAINING

32.
SKILLS
DEVELOPMENT

33.
WORKING
TOGETHER

34.
QUALITY
CONTROL

35.
TIME &
EFFICIENCY

36.
A woman in production earns
Rs 4000 for 40 hours/month,
a contrbution of 30-40% to
her household income

37.
= 1L of clean water = Rs 1
or about $0.02 CAD
= 1 week of clean water
for family of five
= Rs 50 or about $1 CAD

38.
SHORT & LONG
TERM IMPACT

39.
INTERSECTION of the
SACRED & MUNDANE

40.
COMMUNITY-BASED
EDUCATION

41.
storytelling,
science, magic,

42.
music &
dance

43.
a powerful
medium
tuned into
local
realities

44.
cut through the
media noise

45.
ALTERNATIVE
DISTRIBUTION MODEL

46.
IN HOME
AMBASSADOR
KIT

47.
CHILDREN’S
ACTIVITY BOOK

48.
Scalable

49.
Image Credit: Amazon.com
Thinking
SMALL to
SCALE BIG

50.
HOLISTIC
approach

51.
FIT
a solution
reflecting
local
REALITIES

52.
an approach
to other BIG
CHALLENGES

53.
local
production
local
distribution
education/
training
participatory
design
broader
understanding
long-term
adoption
community
ownership/
responsibility
systemic
change
scalable
self-
sustaining
CleanCube
Solution Ecosystem

54.
NEXT STEPS
continued testing
prototyping
replicating
preparing for market

55.
CleanCube